A few weeks back, I worked feverishly to get an article ready for the November 2005 edition of the Sys-con's Java Developer Journal, or as many people refer to it, the JDJ. Check out your pigeon hole mailbox, or head to JDJ online to read the article.

For this article, I delve into the details of matching your JDBC driver against the many choices in the Object-Relational-Mapping (ORM) mechanisms that are so prevalent in many of today's popular architectures. You can use the figure below as a reference. This is an excellent representation we put together that shows how can assemble an application that uses an ORM mechanism, coupled with a best of class JDBC driver and layer it on top of your relational data source.

While I specifically avoid any wide ranging discussion on the pros and cons of each ORM mechanism, I do opt to peel back some of the layers to look exhaustively at the connectivity layer, something that is all too often under-discussed in many development organizations. The majority of today's ORM mechanisms live on top of relational databases, so it is a reasonable assertion to make that without an effective and informed investment in a connectivity layer from a best of breed JDBC driver, you risk loosing the productivity value-add an ORM mechanism to the disadvantage of your development organization. I am of course interested to hear your opinions and feedback, so comment below and we can continue our conversation there.

Progress, Telerik, and certain product names used herein are trademarks or registered trademarks of Progress Software Corporation and/or one of its subsidiaries or affiliates in the U.S. and/or other countries. See Trademarks or appropriate markings.